DIRECTIONS: Read and Wear. Repeat if Desired.

   Oh, how I love a well-worn Bible. I love books in general—the feel of pages (antique books have thick, slightly textured pages and often ragged edges; Bibles have thick, smooth pages; coffee table books have heavy, glossy pages…), I love the smell, I love the weight of a book in my hand. I love the feeling of cracking open a brand-new book right in the middle, and I love the feeling of a beloved, century-old hardback falling open to the faded ink of the inscription page. Most of all, I love the feeling of a well-worn Bible.

     You’ve seen them. The pages have creases, and they’re slightly warped and wrinkled in favorite passages. There’s writing all over the margins and highlighter ink bleeding through the pages. The covers are torn and patched with duct tape (I once knew a guy who had to drive nails through his Bible’s spine to keep it from falling apart). There are leaflets and notes stuffed in between the pages, marking favorite passages and floating out randomly. I just love that.

     This morning, I picked up my sister’s Bible to do a little reading, and I was absolutely thrilled to see that her cover is fading at the spots where her thumbs go where she holds it. The pages are a mess… I’ve never seen such terrible warping as the mountains and valleys on the pages of Psalms. There are markings and highlight marks everywhere, and the corners are dog-eared and worn. What a fabulous feeling. I may not see her read her Bible since I’m gone most of the day, but I have no doubt that she is doing it!

     What does your Bible say about your passion for God’s word? More importantly, what does your LIFE say about your passion for God’s word? You may not like to highlight or mark in your Bible. You may be careful with yours and keep it on a shelf instead of chucking it in your backpack everyday with your sack lunch, three textbooks, and gym shoes. Maybe your Bible is well-read and dust-free, but not packed with pens and papers. A glance at your Bible may tell a little bit about your Bible reading habits, but your life will tell a lot more. How do you live? Do people see Jesus in you? Are you a “living Bible” to those who have never read it? My challenge to you is to stop for thirty seconds right now and evaluate your life. How do you live? How do you love? What changes should be made? Prayerfully consider this. It just might change your life. Now consider your time spent in God’s Word. Do you read every day? Do you absorb what you read? If you’re stressed out, bitter, or complacent, it might be a good time to reevaluate your Bible reading habits. Read daily. Read deeply. The point is not how much or how long; the point is that God is working in your life through his word.

     So pick up your Bible. Get the most out of it. Love it, read, it, wear it out. Or take notes somewhere else and keep the pages neat. Or plug in your iPod or Android and scroll through the pages. Or listen to your audio Bible. However you do it... God is eager to speak to you!

Stressed Out and Overwhelmed?

Well, the New Year (as well as the new semester) is underway! If you’re like me, you may feel a bit like an your mind is being slowly compressed in a flower-press. There is so much to do and think about— a list of assignments and homework that is literally as long as my arm, projects to finish, work to do, money to earn, promises to fulfill, friends and family to spend time with, lives to touch, souls to save, problems to solve, prayers to pray and the world to rescue! Who has time to do everything there is to do and experience? I’m wrestling with a thousand questions and trying to figure out my priorities. I’m trying to study for A’s but spend time with family, too. I’m trying to save money but be generous. I’m trying to plan for the future but follow God’s plans for my life. I’m trying to avoid wasting time and also avoid running myself to exhaustion. Can anyone relate?

Hopefully you, unlike me, have not yet dissolved into a useless mass of nerves and mush. Hopefully this will not happen to you at all this semester. Keep in mind the bigger picture of life. What is your purpose in life? Is it getting 100% instead of 92% on your history test? Of course not. At the same time, do not get so overwhelmed by your desire to save the planet and eradicate all forms of social injustice that you totally overwhelm yourself and render yourself incapable of doing anything efficiently. Take your opportunities as they come, and create opportunities for yourself, but realize that you can’t do anything single-handedly. Don’t miss the smaller pieces to the puzzle—you may not be able to go save an entire tribe of South American natives right now, but you can share your faith (and maybe a coffee date) with that lost person in your life. You can stop being busy in order to help someone move. You can look up from your computer or iPhone long enough to notice that someone is having a bad day, and take the opportunity to make it a good one for them.

    And last but not least—make sure to take time every day to read the Bible and pray. To those of us who have been in the Chruch for a while, this advice starts to sound cliché, but it’s the best way to stave of stress and keep your spirit full and your mind clear. Drishat Shalom—Peace to you!

Inconvenient Christmas

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuQFFCI1h34

I love this song. It’s funny and a little far fetched, but it’s also a reminder that even when this potentially stressful time of year comes around, we can just relax and remember what’s really important. How often do we really “have it bad?” Honestly, very rarely. I’m not saying that we don’t have our frustrations—in fact, I did write a new verse to this song that reflected our family’s mishaps! However (as this song reminded me on my most frustrating day this season), we can get through and over the road bumps in life and remember the incredible trouble that Jesus and his family went through in order to give us the ultimate Christmas gift—hope of eternal life.  Don’t let the business and stress of the season distract you from the precious core of this holiday.

Among the bills that I received was a postcard marked, "Apology,

the Christmas gifts you ordered aren't in stock."

So I packed up the kids for grandpa's house,

then a blizzard blew in and the car broke down.

So, we shared a quart of eggnog at a truck stop.

And I said, "Now kids, this is unfortunate,

you think it's bad, well it's inconvenient.

But the most inconvenient Christmas ever was,

was the first one, when God came so far to give himself to us.

So when the stress hits each December

how it helps me to remember

God is with us most when things just can't get worse.

Ah, the most inconvenient Christmas ever was, was the first.

By the time we got to Grandpa's house

his Christmas lights had burned it down.

So we had to take him home to live with us.

But he couldn't stand to leave the farm, so now there's cattle in our yard,

sheep on the rug, pigs in the tub, and a rooster at dawn.

I said, "Now honey, this is unfortunate,

you think it's bad, well it's inconvenient.

But the most inconvenient Christmas ever was,

was the first one when God came so far to give himself to us.

So when the stress hits each December

how it helps me to remember

God is with us most when things just can't get worse.

Ah, the most inconvenient Christmas ever was, was the first.

A young girl expects a child she can't explain;

forced to walk a hundred miles just to give birth in the hay.

While the king in that same hour,

fearing challenge to his power,

sent his troops to track him down and wipe him out.

Hands down,

the most inconvenient Christmas ever was,

was the first one when God came so far to give himself to us.

So when the stress hits each December

how it helps me to remember

God is with us most when things just can't get worse.

Ah, the most inconvenient Christmas ever was, was the first.

DO.

Today at chapel, we had a guest speaker who grew up as a missionaries’ kid in Liberia and now runs missions to the people there by providing practical needs, like shoes, and showing the love of Christ. He talked about the importance of doing something and being active to make a difference for the poor, the orphans, and other underprivileged. What he said was just tearing my heart out, and I wanted to scream, because meanwhile I was sitting on my rear in a newly refurbished gym at an expensive private university—I was wearing shoes and clothes with plenty of wear in them, I had a nutritious meal in my lunch bag, and I was going home to a functional family, a roof, several hundred dollars worth of electronics, and WHAT AM I DOING ABOUT POVERTY? A little. I do a little. But it’s not on the forefront of my mind, especially since school started. And I know that every one of us college students got out of our plastic folding chairs and went about our business, and probably most of us will not make any life changes based on that sermon.

I am just getting really sick of doing things for the kingdom, but focusing primarily on myself. I am getting really sick of complaining about eating yams instead of tacos. And I am getting sick of our society as a whole. Opulence disgusts me. There is more to life than this. There is more to life than self.

WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS?

Remembering

To all those who have laid down their lives

To those who have lost a loved one

To the wounded

To the soldiers who have healed

To those who did not

To fathers and mothers who had to leave their children

To sons and daughters who had to leave their parents

To the men and women who are far away

To the ones who may leave at any time

To those who have returned

To those who direct them

To those who train them

To those who treat them

To those who feed them

To those who minister to them

To those who love them

To those who pray over them

Thank you

Let us never forget.

Maybe It's YOUR Problem

~Romans 2:1 “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.” ~

Yikes.

     There are times when I read a passage of scripture and something jumps off the page and hits me between the eyes. Romans 2:1 is one of those passages.  I have found that what it says is entirely too true. Have you ever noticed that the things that bother you most about other people are the things that YOU have a problem with? I have. One of my biggest struggles is my pride problem. I have been trying to kill it for years, but it just doesn’t want to go away. As a side note, I think this is an appropriate place to thank God for the demolition work that He has done on my pride. Pride is one of those obnoxious mental problems that sneak up on you and increase exponentially as you think you are beating it. The moment you believe yourself to be humble, you have regained your pride. This is why only God can beat pride. I’m not saying that mine is gone and that I’m now a humble person, but when I look back at the person I was four years ago, I am absolutely disgusted. I am grateful for those horrible times and embarrassing situations I experienced while God was working on my pride. If you pray earnestly for God to take away your pride, boy, will he get busy! Maybe I’m crazy, but I keep on praying that prayer and I keep on experiencing the pain. It is worth it to get closer to the person God wants me to be.

     In light of this verse, then, it will probably not surprise you to read that my pet peeve in other people is arrogance. A few days ago, I ran into someone who made it a point to prove that she is better than I am. She virtually destroyed all possibility of civil conversation because she was determined to prove her superiority. I hate conflict, so I let it slide and ended the conversation on a good note as quickly as possible. However, inside, I was really, really irritated.  I passed judgment on this girl for her pride. It ate at me for hours before I prayed about it and remembered that the things that bug me the most are the things that I have a problem with. Ouch. I can always tell when I really need to work on something. The more someone else’s attitude bugs me, the more I need to pay attention to my own attitudes and actions.

     Let me challenge you. Next time someone’s fault get on your nerves, stop focusing on them and their problems. You can’t change them. Instead, try a little introspection. Discover why you are so irritated. Get to the root of the problem. Find out what parasite living inside you is causing you to be upset, and pray for its removal. It might hurt for a while; I’ll be honest. But in the long run, it’s going to make your life sweeter and bring you closer to becoming the person God created you to become.

Your Mutual What?

Before I begin, I want to warn you about the content of this post. I know some of my readers probably would rather not be exposed to very adult topics, and I’d rather not subject you to reading something that you don’t want to or should not read. This is something for high schoolers on up! That being said, you may read on at your own risk.

This week was a milestone for me—I started college! One of my classes is on Biblical Interpretation. For our first assignment, we have to read this article, http://thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2008/12/05/our-mutual-joy.print.html/ ,  which we certainly don’t agree with, and identify the biblical arguments that the author uses to present her case. After reading this article, I wish the assignment were to write a very long essay to argue against the article. I suppose I’ll have to settle for a blog post. I’d really like to post the entire article here and then attack it and tear it apart, paragraph by paragraph. However, that would become a very long blog post, and it would most likely end up sounding angry. So I’ll simply address the main issues I see with this article, assuming my reader has read it. Right now, I am extremely annoyed, offended, disgusted, and altogether horrified by the way that the author, Lisa Miller, mutilates the Holy word of my God.

    

     In this article, Miller addresses the topic of the Biblical view of homosexuality. I really don’t know why she even bothers. Obviously, she regard the Bible as myth; she denies the virgin birth and refers to the account of Esther as “legend.” In addition, she discards large portions of scripture and reinterprets other parts. She claims that Old Testament sections of law (such as Leviticus 18, which describes gay sex as detestible) as “throwaway lines.” Throwaway lines! Since when is any part of the Bible disposable? Second Timothy 3:16 says that “all scripture is God-breathed.” That includes Leviticus. It includes all of the law, for that matter.

      As far as I can tell, from my viewpoint as a relatively well-studied but and yet young and inexperienced individual, there are two parts to the Law. There are the sections that deal with the forgiveness of sin, sacrifices, ceremonial cleanliness, and all things temple-related.  These sections were fulfilled in Christ Jesus (Matthew 5:17), and we no longer go about cleansing our souls in the same way. This would be an excellent discussion for another blog post.  There are also the sections that deal with public order, disciplinary action, et cetera; the case laws and related items. Modern society rarely, if ever, follows the biblical laws that God gave the Israelites. There are a few reasons for this. First of all, we a Westerners see democracy, republicanism, or some form of both or either as the only proper way to run a country. Secondly, a theocratic government seems preposterous in this modern age. Thirdly, as much as we like to bash leftists, our society is, unfortunately, very heavily influenced by Marxist thought, which is anti-God in nature*. However, a careful study of the Law (through the lens of cultural context in regards to the Israelite definitions of “slavery” and other seemingly horrible ideas) will show that God really is a lot smarter that people when it comes to designing government. Yes, capital punishment is inflicted on adulterers. Yes, slavery is allowed. Yes, high fines are imposed on criminals who cannot afford them. But stop-- instead of looking at it through the eyes of a Romanized, Westernized, faulty and failing modern system, look at it how God mean for you to view it. Immorality would be nearly nonexistent if the penalty were death, families would be whole, single teen mothers wouldn’t struggle to raise children.  Slavery in Israel was nothing like slavery in early America or in ancient Egypt. The high fines on criminals often drove them to be under servitude to the benefit of whomever they had wronged. Is that a bad idea? I don’t think so. The Law never mentioned prisons. In America, a criminal is locked up, the victim, though his taxes, pays for the criminal’s room and board, and the criminal often leaves the prison with a PHD! In ancient Israel, the criminal pays what he can to cover the cost of what he stole, and then covers the rest by working without pay. The criminal’s sin toward the victim is atoned for. He has paid back what he owes. The victim receives compensation. The state doesn’t spend millions. The system works (Ex. 22). In the Law, God says not to beat up your servant. He says not to exact usury. He says not to kill other people, steal their stuff or have sexual relations with someone of your same gender. It’s there in black and white, and it is as relevant today as it was then. Matthew 2:35, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.”

     Another thing that I find very odd about Miller’s arguments is that while she disregards the Law on grounds of cultural context, she clings to Paul’s statements on the value of celibacy without really looking at any context at all. Paul says in 1 Corinthians that it is good to remain single and not marry. Looking at this through the lens of cultural context, I can see two reasons for this: first, the obvious reason, that it is much easier to serve God when you don’t have a family to support and be distracted by. Second, at the time of Paul’s writing, Christianity wasn’t exactly a popular religion with the general public and the government. It’s a lot easier to pick up and flee when you’re flying solo.

     I could go on for pages, but I want to address only one more thing about Miller’s article that really killed me. Allow me to paraphrase her words: “Society has abandoned most of the other traditional aspects of marriage; why not the one-man, one-woman definition? Let’s get with the times.” Ah. So now we are supposed to condone the departure from the “traditions” that held society together for centuries! I’m an extreme conservative—I believe that a woman should submit to her husband. There was a time, not so very long ago, when I would not have been labeled a “weirdo” for believing this way. Most Christians don’t hold this view, despite what the Bible teaches (Eph 5:22, 24; Col 3:18). As a whole, we no longer believe that a woman should submit to and obey her husband. That is an example of backsliding (sorry if that offends you—don’t talk to me about it. I didn’t write the book, I just read it). According to Miller, because we are backslidden, we ought to become more so! The logic of this idea escapes me completely.

Miller says that “we cannot look to the Bible as a marriage manual.” I say, why not? Isn’t the Bible supposed to be at the center of every aspect of our lives? Any married person will tell you that their marriage is a huge part of who they are and what they do. Marriage is a contract that binds two people together, hopefully for life. I don’t want to try to figure out how to make it work on my own! I need help from the One who designed marriage and who created me and whoever I’ll marry. Miller got a lot of things wrong in her article. Her logic is senseless, her argument is full of holes, her quotes are out of context. However, the biggest mistake she made was to claim that the Bible cannot be an authority on marriage. The Bible is the final authority on everything, and God promises that those who obey Him will receive blessings. I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty good to me. I think I’ll stick with my old-fashioned traditions.

*As a side note, Marxism or Marxist-like ideas can probably be blamed for the gay rights movement. It is quite simple to trace the high divorce rate, increase of immorality in the 20^th century, abortion and gay rights to the feminist movement. Feminist thought is essentially Marxist.